The present Invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Calibrachoa plant, botanically known as Calibrachoa hybrida, and hereinafter referred to by the name xe2x80x98Wescacherryxe2x80x99.
The new Calibrachoa is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Sudlohn-Oeding, Germany. The new Calibrachoa originated from a cross made by the Inventor of a proprietary selection of Calibrachoa identified as code number 97-116, not patented, as the female, or seed, parent with a proprietary selection of Calibrachoa identified as code number 98-120, not patented, as the male, or pollen, parent. The new Calibrachoa was selected by the Inventor in 1999 on the basis of its large flower size. Plants of the new Calibrachoa differ from plants of the parent selections primarily in flower color and flower size.
Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by terminal cuttings taken at Sudlohn-Oeding, Germany, has shown that the unique features of this new Calibrachoa are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.
Plants of the cultivar Wescacherry have not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environment such as temperature, light intensity, daylength, and fertility level without, however, any variance in genotype.
The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of xe2x80x98Wescacherryxe2x80x99. These characteristics in combination distinguish xe2x80x98Wescacherryxe2x80x99 as a new and distinct cultivar:
1. Upright to semi-upright growth habit.
2. Large flower size.
3. Intense purple red-colored flowers.
4. Flowers that do not close with low light levels or at night.
5. Good weather tolerance.
Plants of the cultivar Wescacherry can be compared to plants of the Calibrachoa cultivar Million Bells Cherry, not patented. However in side-by-side comparisons conducted by the Inventor in Sudlohn-Oeding, Germany, plants of the new Calibrachoa and the cultivar Million Bells Cherry differ in the following characteristics:
1. Plants of the new Calibrachoa have larger flowers than plants of the cultivar Million Bells Cherry.
2. Flower throat color of plants of the new Calibrachoa is more intense yellow than flower throat color of plants of the cultivar Million Bells Cherry.
3. Leaves of the new Calibrachoa are darker green than leaves of the cultivar Million Bells Cherry.
4. Plants of the new Calibrachoa are more upright and have stronger lateral branches than plants of the cultivar Million Bells Cherry.
Plants of the cultivar Wescacherry can also be compared to plants of the pink-flowered Calibrachoa cultivar Wespink, disclosed in U.S. Plant Patent Ser. No. 09/592,377. However in side-by-side comparisons conducted by the Inventor in Sudlohn-Oeding, Germany, plants of the new Calibrachoa and the cultivar Wespink differ in the following characteristics:
1. Plants of the new Calibrachoa have larger flowers and larger leaves than plants of the cultivar Wespink.
2. Plants of the new Calibrachoa are more upright than plants of the cultivar Wespink.
3. Plants of the new Calibrachoa have stronger lateral branches than plants of the cultivar Wespink.